


A Harmonious Escapade

by damadape



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Happy Ending, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Hogwarts Eighth Year, My First Smut, Plot With Porn, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:28:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25755886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/damadape/pseuds/damadape
Summary: As Harry, Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts for their final year after the Second Wizarding War, long-hidden secrets will finally make themselves known in very interesting ways.This is my first ever smut fic. I tried to do a PWP (Porno Without Plot), but the story just kept growing and growing. I'm aiming for three chapters at most. Hopefully, they will all be uploaded soon enough.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Harry Potter
Comments: 45
Kudos: 218
Collections: The Harmony Shag-A-Thon 2021





	1. The Revelation

‘Harry, will you _please_ get up alread – OH MY GOD!’

Harry heard someone squeal loudly as the door of his dormitory hurriedly slammed shut. He blearily opened his eyes as he fumbled around for his glasses. For a second, he felt strangely cold before he realised that his sheets had been wrenched off him and were all on the floor. Suddenly, it all came crashing down on him. Hermione, who had taken it upon herself to wake him up on weekends due to his tendency to oversleep instead of joining her early in the library to study, has just seen the bottom half of his body naked. Not normally one to forgo underwear in bed, he had decided to quickly masturbate the previous evening in an attempt to exhaust himself enough to fall asleep, and he did not bother to put them back on when he finished. It did not help, of course, that what Hermione had such a reaction to was not just his nudity, but to the rather painfully engorged erection that he was currently sporting.

Feeling thankful that he was at least all alone in the dormitory, Harry slowly got out of bed and grabbed the first bits of clothes from his trunk. As he got dressed, he was struck with the realisation that Hermione will probably be too embarrassed to meet his eye for the rest of the day. Groaning and cursing his bad luck, he ignored the urge to take care of his morning wood, he tried to make himself look as presentable as he could before making his way downstairs to the Common Room. As he entered, he immediately spotted her sitting next to the window overlooking the castle grounds. Although she was hiding her face behind a large book, her fingers were gripping it with such force that it looked like she was about to rip it apart. Deciding to bite the bullet, Harry grabbed a chair and sat down next to her.

‘Morning Hermione,’ he said brightly, in an attempt to avoid the potential awkwardness that he was sure will ensue.

‘Oh, hello Harry,’ she replied in a rather high-pitched voice. The book was still covering her face. ‘Did you sleep well?’ she squeaked out.

‘Not bad, I guess. You?’ he asked.

‘Oh, you know, the usual,’ she continued in the same high-pitched voice. She then took a deep breath and lowered her book. Her face was flushed scarlet and was trying to not meet his eye. ‘I’m really sorry, Harry,’ she stammered. ‘I didn’t think ... I mean, I shouldn’t have woken you up like that.’

‘It’s ok, Hermione,’ he said gently. ‘I’m over it, and you should be too. Ok?’ He suddenly smirked. ‘Anyway, I rather you got a look at my goods than some rabid fangirl like Romilda Vane,’ he said teasingly. Hermione’s blush deepened even more as she spluttered out another apology. Harry shrugged nonchalantly and waved it off. ‘Where’s Ron, anyway?’ he asked in an attempt to change the subject.

‘Oh, he went down with Lavender,’ she scowled. The reddening of her face now lessened to some degree. ‘Ever since those two got back together, he hasn’t been hanging around with us much. Have you noticed that?’

‘Yeah, I did. Still, nothing wrong with him getting some snogging done, isn’t it?’

‘Well, I suppose not. I guess I wish he waited a little longer ... you know?’

Harry sighed inwardly. He knew exactly what Hermione was referring to. Sometime after the war had ended, Ron and Hermione had a good, long talk about their feelings for one another and they had both eventually agreed to start seeing other people. While Hermione was seemingly taking her time to actually date someone, Ron had wasted no time in sticking his tongue down Lavender’s throat again when they all started their eighth year back in September. Harry, who had gone through a similar thing with Ginny (albeit in a more gentle and mature manner), couldn’t help feeling a little sorry for Hermione.

‘I do,’ he said quietly. ‘Still, we can’t really do much about him, can we? Besides, we’re both in the same boat, remember? You’re not alone in this.’ He patted her hand encouragingly.

‘I know,’ said Hermione softly. Her eyes briefly met his before slowly raising the book back up to her face. Harry started to gaze out of the window. He smiled as he watched Hagrid strolling around the grounds. He reminded himself to pay him a visit when he next had a free period.

‘Why are we, though?’ said Hermione suddenly.

‘Excuse me?’ asked Harry, with some bemusement.

‘Why do you and I have to be in the same boat? Why don’t you and I go on dates with people?’

‘Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m not really in the mood to be mobbed by a band of rabid fangirls,’ joked Harry.

Hermione sighed exasperatedly. ‘I’m sure there’s a girl out there who would actually like getting to know the real you, Harry.’

‘I honestly doubt it, Hermione,’ replied Harry dully.

‘Well, I’m not going to sit around while Ron goes around snogging Lavender,’ she huffed.

‘Ok, but what are you gonna do?’ asked Harry. ‘Wait, don’t tell me.' he added, before Hermione could interrupt him. ‘You’re going to find McLaggen again and try and get him to snog you in front of Ron, right?' he suggested with a grin. Hermione gave him a dark look. ‘I still remember how freaked you were at Slughorn’s party,’ he continued, snorting with laughter. ‘Or are you really going to consider going for Zacharias Smith this time?’

‘Don’t be so annoying, Harry,’ sniffed Hermione. ‘This isn’t about making Ron jealous again. This is about me moving on with my life. If I’m going to do this, I’m going to date someone who is actually nice to me.’

‘Like who?’ smirked Harry. ‘Us blokes are all perverts, you know.’

‘Well, I never saw _you_ get up to much!’ retorted Hermione. ‘Or have you been secretly snogging Romilda Vane in a broom cupboard?’

‘Don’t be ridiculous!’ scoffed Harry. ‘As if I’d ever do anything like that with her.’

‘Well, you were with Ginny for a while so I’m sure you got up to _some_ stuff,’ said Hermione with a raised eyebrow.

‘Well, I mean we did snog sometimes, but we did actually talk about different things a lot of the time, you know,’ said Harry. Now that he thought about it, a part of him was a little disappointed that he and Ginny never really went further than kissing.

‘Well, that’s good. That means you’re nice and considerate with girls,’ said Hermione as she interrupted his thoughts.

‘I suppose so,’ shrugged Harry. ‘Guess that means I fulfil your one criterion, don’t I?’ he said with a smirk.

Hermione rolled her eyes. ‘Sure, like you’d ever want to snog me, Harry. Don’t make me laugh.’

Harry blinked. ‘I mean, I’ve never really thought about it but why did you have to say it like that?

‘Come on, Harry! It’s so obvious that you have a type,’ said Hermione pointedly. ‘You like pretty girls with straight hair that love Quidditch. I’m clearly the opposite of that,’ she said, as she gestured to her bushy mane.

‘Don’t be ridiculous. You’re as pretty as any of the girls that I’ve ever liked,’ said Harry, giving Hermione an incredulous look.

A faint blush coloured Hermione’s cheeks. ‘Well ... I mean ... thank you.’

‘And you like Quidditch enough to come and watch us play!’ went on Harry. ‘That still counts!’

‘Well, of course I’m going to watch _you_ play, you idiot. You’re my best friend!’ retorted Hermione, her faint blush having left her cheeks. ‘Not only that, but you’re also a really exceptional flier. I remember Viktor telling me how impressed he was with the way you took on that Horntail!’

‘Yeah, I remember him telling me that back in fourth year,’ said Harry. He quickly recalled the memory of Krum telling him how much he had impressed him during the First Task of the Triwizard Tournament, and how he had felt a little smug that a talented international Quidditch player of Krum’s stature had paid his flying skills such a sincere compliment.

‘Well, it’s true,’ said Hermione kindly.

‘Talking of Krum, why not date him?’ suggested Harry. ‘He always seemed taken with you. Hell, he even cornered me once and asked me if you were my girlfriend.’ 

Hermione sighed. ‘Honestly, I just don't really see us working long-term. He's really lovely, don't get me wrong, but I never quite felt the exact same way that he did. I'd rather we'd just remain friends.' She fell silent for a moment. ‘Remember that banner we made for your first-ever Quidditch match?’ she asked with a small smile.

‘Of course I do!’ said Harry. ‘That was such a cool banner. Didn't you make it change colour?’

‘Yes, I did,’ nodded Hermione. ‘It was quite a tricky little charm, but I think I did it ok.’

‘It looked great, Hermione,’ said Harry warmly. ‘Learning new spells comes so naturally to you. The rest of us tend to need more practice than you.’

‘Oh, hush,’ smiled Hermione, as her cheeks turned a little pink again. ‘You’re still much better at Defence than I am. And I still can’t cast a Patronus Charm like you do. The way you do it is really something else!’

‘Well, I can’t let you be good at everything,’ teased Harry. ‘Where’s the fun in that?’

Hermione snorted in reply. ‘You’re such a prat sometimes, you know that?’

‘I know,’ he said with a wink.

Hermione rolled her eyes again as she closed her book and looked out of the window. Harry copied her and found himself marvelling at how nice the weather looked. He missed flying ever since he had lost his Firebolt when the Order had rescued him from Privet Drive over a year ago, yet he still hasn’t felt comfortable enough to replace the broomstick that Sirius had bought him for Christmas in his third year.

‘Do you really think I’m pretty, Harry?’ said Hermione quietly.

Harry looked at her puzzledly. ‘Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?’

For some reason, Hermione was not meeting his eye. ‘Um ... can I be honest with you about something?’

‘Sure. What’s up?’ asked Harry curiously.

‘Well ... I’m not sure how to best put this but ... well, I sort of had a bit of a crush on you one time.’ said Hermione quietly.

Harry stared at her. His throat felt like it had dropped in the pit of his stomach.

‘You’re joking, right?’ he said feebly.

‘No, I’m not,’ she said as her eyes narrowed. ‘And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mock me.’

‘I’m not mocking you; I swear!’ said Harry quickly. ‘It’s just ... you really had a crush on _me_?’

‘Yes, Harry. Is that so hard to believe?’ said Hermione.

‘Well, I mean ... well, you never said anything!’

‘Well, of course I didn’t! I knew I wasn’t your type and I didn’t want to jeopardise our friendship just because I had a crush on you,’ she said with a shrug.

‘But ... Ginny told me how you gave her pointers on how she can relax around me so she can get me to notice her! And all that time you had a crush on me?’ he said incredulously.

‘Don’t be so dramatic, Harry. I didn’t have a crush on you ALL the time.’

‘Well, when did you then?’ he asked.

Hermione took a while to reply. ‘Honestly ... I’ve always had a soft spot for you ever since I’ve known you,’ she admitted. ‘Although, if I had to pinpoint it, I think it started around fourth year. You and I had gotten a little closer since Ron and you were fighting and ... well, it just happened, I guess,’ she continued with a soft blush.

‘And when did you move on from me?’ asked Harry bewilderedly.

‘Well, it’s a bit of a long story,’ sighed Hermione. ‘I started giving Ginny advice about you and boys in general during that summer before our fourth year. I had gotten to know her a lot more by that time, and I could tell that she genuinely liked you for who you are. I didn’t have strong feelings for you at the time, so me helping her out in order to get your attention wasn’t something that I had an issue with. It did complicate matters a little later on when I realised how much I liked you though, but I couldn’t really do anything anyway since you obviously had a crush on Cho. That fact alone always held me back from telling you how I felt about you, although I did seriously consider telling you in our fifth year, but I changed my mind early on because you were still really into Cho, and I knew that Ginny wasn’t really over you even though she was dating Michael Corner at the time. And obviously, I knew Ron liked me, and I really liked him as well, despite him acting like a complete prat sometimes. And when I started to notice how much more confident Ginny was being around you, and how obvious that you were starting to like her too ... well, with everything that was happening at the time, you of all people deserved to feel a little happy for once.’

‘Ok, but you still haven’t told me when you actually gave up on me,’ pointed out Harry confusedly.

‘Well, I guess I officially gave up on you when you told me and Ron that you kissed Cho,’ she said quietly. This admission was like a slap to the face to Harry. Now that he thought about it, Hermione did seem a little too formal and bossy when she was asking him about his kiss with Cho.

‘Anyway, that’s when I decided that I was wasting my time,’ she continued. ‘I had already started to force myself to move on from you before that time either way, because I always knew that my chances with you were slim. I mean, I did wonder what it would be like to go out with you, but I never let myself get carried away, so it didn’t really hurt to move on from you.

Harry stared at her dumbly. ‘But ... why me? I’m sure there are better guys out there than me for you to go out with,’ he said feebly.

‘Honestly, there really aren’t Harry,’ shrugged Hermione. ‘You’re a really wonderful person. Aside from the fact that you’re intelligent and courageous, you also care so much about the people that you love. I’ve always considered it a privilege to be your best friend.’ She gave him another small smile before adding ‘And ... well, it doesn’t help that you’re also quite good looking. You’re quite a fanciable guy’.

Harry’s mind was spinning. Out of nowhere, he briefly recalled the conversation that he had with Ginny just after Dumbledore’s funeral, and how Hermione had given her advice to loosen up so that Harry would start noticing her. Never in a million years would he have ever thought that she did all of that because she just wanted him to happy with a girl that she thought was best suited for him. Yet why didn’t Hermione feel comfortable enough to tell him about her feelings for him? Had he completely overlooked her femininity to the point that she had to force herself to get over him because he was constantly making her feel like she was not enough for him?

As he ran through the moments that he shared over the years with Hermione, he couldn’t fathom how he had never picked up on the small hints that Hermione was giving him. The kiss on the cheek at the end of their fourth year, her constantly enthusiastic hugs, the sheer glee she exhibited when she thought he was made a prefect in their fifth year.

 _Maybe she thought it would be fun if you two_ _got to have_ _a little alone time together,_ said a little voice in his head.

‘And based on what I saw this morning, you’re clearly very ... um, well developed, if I do say so myself,’ ended Hermione as she blushed deeply; her last comment breaking Harry’s stream of thought.

‘Well, thanks.’ mumbled Harry. He felt his face turning warm at the thought of Hermione seeing his erection not even a half-hour ago.

‘You know, I actually feel a little relieved,’ said Hermione brightly. ‘I never told anyone about my feelings for you. It feels good to just let it out, you know?’

‘Mhm, sure.’ Harry was having a hard time focusing on Hermione’s words and felt himself concentrating more on her body. While it’s true that Hermione is not known for being athletic, she nonetheless had a lovely slim figure, and what Harry always suspected to be a nice chest. It’s not that he had never noticed these physical aspects about Hermione before but, prior to this very moment, they're not anything that he had ever really lamented on.

 _Still, no chest can ever beat the one that Susan Bones has,_ sniggered the same voice in his head.

To his horror, Harry felt his dick slowly stirring. He forced himself to think of anything that can distract him. He focused on a combination of his Aunt Marge, Umbridge and Ron’s nauseous farts after a particularly large meal. To his relief, he felt his dick settle down.

‘Do you want to head to the library, Harry?’ asked Hermione gently. ‘It’s just that I do have a lot of work to do, and I know you do as well’.

Harry nodded. ‘Sure, I’ll just go and get my things.’ He forced himself to not flee upstairs as a myriad of smutty thoughts threatened to expose themselves again in the form of another throbbing erection. As he entered his dormitory, he took a deep breath and sat down heavily on his four-poster bed.

 _How did I never notice?_ he asked himself furiously. _What am I supposed to do now?_ He felt a stab of panic. _Is this going to change anything?_ He forced himself to calm down before continuing to lament.

 _She liked me,_ he thought. _She liked me, but she never said anything_ _because she assumed I’d never like her back_ _._ _But it’s not a problem, because she_ _doesn’t have_ _any_ _feelings for me anymore._ He paused to consider for a moment. For some reason, this thought made him feel a little disappointed. Ignoring this, he pressed on. _Besides, she_ _was_ _probably_ _just venting about how Ron had moved on from her so quickly._ He felt a small prickling of anger towards his best friend. _She deserves_ _someone better than us. That much I know for sure._

Finally feeling a little less conflicted, he grabbed his bag and checked to see if all his books were in it. Feeling content, he straightened up and slung the bag over his shoulders as he made his way back down to the Common Room. Hermione, who was still sitting where he had left her, beamed at him as he descended. Harry felt a jolt in his stomach.

'Ready?' asked Hermione eagerly, as she made his way towards him.

'Impatient, are we?' joked Harry feebly, his mouth suddenly feeling very dry.

Hermione snorted derisively. 'Come on, we've already wasted enough time as it is. And I'm sure you'd like to grab some breakfast first.'

As she made her way in front of him to push open the Fat Lady's portrait, she lightly brushed against him. Harry stiffened in response. Inexplicable as it may seem, he was starting to realise that he could not stop admiring just how utterly beautiful Hermione Granger is.


	2. The Lamentation

‘I knew it,’ said Ron slowly. ‘I knew she liked you. I was right. Hell, half the school thought you two were dating at one point. Even Rita Skeeter got it right!’

‘I know,’ groaned Harry. It had barely been a day since Hermione had revealed to him that she’d once harboured feelings for him, yet Harry couldn’t stop thinking about the flood of affection that he was suddenly experiencing whenever he now thought about her. After having an internal battle with himself before going to sleep, he reluctantly cornered Ron and Ginny in the Gryffindor common room just after breakfast the next day in order to get their opinion on the matter, despite having reservations about how they’ll probably react. ‘I haven’t stopped thinking about what she told me.’ he added. ‘It’s driving me mental!’

‘But she said she was over you, right?’ asked Ginny tentatively.

‘Yes, she did,’ confirmed Harry.

Ginny shrugged. ‘She never hinted anything whenever we talked about boys,’ she said thoughtfully. ‘Quite frankly, I’m as surprised as you are.’

‘Well, what’s the problem then if she’s over him?’ demanded Ron.

‘Don’t be an idiot, Ron,’ snapped Ginny. She gave Harry a kind look. ‘You’ve just realised that you’ve liked her all along, haven’t you?’

Harry hesitated. ‘Honestly, I don’t know, Ginny’. Catching her disbelieving look, he hastily continued ‘I mean, I’ve never really let myself think about her in that way. There was always something else going on in my life that took precedence over anything else. Frankly, I was always amazed that you and I got a chance to date for a couple of weeks before Dumbledore’s death.’

‘Well, nothing’s holding you back now, Harry,’ said Ginny pointedly. ‘But you haven’t exactly told us how you feel about her. I mean, you get along with her just fine, don’t you? She knows you almost as well as you know yourself, if not better.’

‘Yes, of course,’ said Harry. ‘But I hardly think that’s -’

‘What, don’t tell me you don’t think she’s pretty!’ exclaimed Ginny, a mischievous smirk playing on her lips.

Harry felt his cheeks redden, ‘No, I mean, yes, she’s very pretty but -’

‘And you two never really fought like me and her used to,’ suggested Ron.

‘What, you’re actually okay with this?’ said Harry in disbelief, turning around to face Ron.

Ron flushed. ‘Erm ... well, I am dating Lavender now,’ he mumbled, his head hanging low. ‘And Hermione and I are definitely broken up for good,’ he sighed. ‘I remember her reassuring me that there was nothing wrong with me; it’s just that we weren’t really compatible like that.’ He glanced up. ‘I guess she still felt strongly for you, mate.’

‘But -’

‘Harry, what’s the real problem here?’ asked Ginny softly. ‘Are you scared?’

Harry opened his mouth to reply, but he suddenly felt a catch in his throat. Instead, he nodded stiffly.

‘I see,’ pondered Ginny. ‘And what is it that’s worrying you, exactly?’

Harry sighed. ‘It’s just ...’ he croaked, before clearing his throat. ‘She was so sure about how she felt about me, but I was always so blind to her. And she put her heart on the line just so she could see me happy. How can I ever make up for that? How can I ever make her understand how sorry I am that I made her feel like she wasn’t enough?’ He sighed heavily. ‘I mean, what kind of friend am I that I never picked up on any of that?’ he said wearily, burying his head in his hands.

‘Wait, are you just feeling guilty that you never returned her feelings? Is that why you’re acting like this?’ asked a bewildered Ginny.

‘Maybe, I don’t know. Is that bad?’ asked Harry desperately.

‘Yes, it is! You’re making it sound like you’re pitying her!’ said Ginny crossly. ‘Harry, you happen to be talking about my best friend too. No matter how nice of a guy you are, there is no way that you are dating Hermione just because you feel sorry for her!’

‘Look, it doesn’t matter either way,’ said Harry firmly. ‘She said she’s over me, so I’m just wasting my time talking about this.’

‘Harry –’

‘Ginny, I’m just overthinking it. Hermione doesn’t like me like that. I’m sure of it.’

‘But –’

‘Leave off, Gin.’ said Ron. ‘If Harry is sure about how he feels, then I think we can respect his wishes.’

Ginny scoffed. ‘Right, because I’m sure her obsessive ex-boyfriend would just _love_ to see his best friend dating his ex-girlfriend. Don’t be so petty, Ron.’

‘I’m not being petty, Ginny! And Harry’s your ex-boyfriend as well!’ pointed out Ron.

‘Oh please! For all we know, Harry’s been wanting to fuck Hermione’s brains out for years!’

‘Will you two shut up?’ said Harry, his face bright red from Ginny’s crass remark. He got to his feet. ‘I knew it was a mistake telling you two about this.’ Ignoring their stunned faces, he started to make his way out of the Common Room. ‘I’m off to Hagrid’s,’ he said, as he pushed open the Fat Lady's portrait.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Harry breathed a sigh of relief. As he had assumed, Ron still harboured some lingering feelings towards Hermione, whilst Ginny was all too happy to help Harry figure out his love life.

 _Yeah, since she’s so happy with hers,_ he thought bitterly, as he started to make the long walk to Hagrid’s hut. _Besides_ , _I’ve certainly never thought of Hermione in_ that _position ... or any position, really_.

Flushing at the thought of Hermione in such a compromising manner (while reminding himself to not get carried away, less he tent the front of his robes), he finally stepped out into the grounds, where he immediately spotted Hagrid quietly tending to Buckbeak the Hippogriff, who was tied up next to his stone hut. He quickly marched towards them, shouting out to Hagrid in order to get his attention.

‘Hullo, Harry,’ beamed Hagrid from underneath his great, bushy beard. ‘I haven’t see yeh in a while, now. How have you been keepin’, eh?’

‘Not too bad,’ said Harry with a grin. ‘Where’s Fang?’

‘Ah, he’s sleepin’ inside. Wanna come in and have a cuppa?’

‘Sure,’ shrugged Harry. He followed Hagrid inside, wiping his feet before entering the warm hut. He smiled at Fang, who was busy snoring near the foot of Hagrid’s bed.

‘There yeh go, get tha’ down you,’ said Hagrid, handing Harry his usual bucket-sized mug.

‘Cheers,’ said Harry as he gratefully sipped the tea. ‘Buckbeak’s doing alright then, is he?’

‘Happy as can be, lemme tell yeh,’ chuckled Hagrid. ‘How come yer all alone? Where’s Ron and Hermione? It’s been a while since I saw them two. Are they still datin’?

‘Oh, no,’ said Harry. ‘They broke up a while ago. Ron actually got back together with Lavender.’

‘Ah well, these things happen,’ said Hagrid wisely.

‘Yeah? Like with Madame Maxime?’ smirked Harry.

‘Don’ yeh get cheeky,’ said Hagrid gruffly. ‘Although,’ he added ruefully, ‘who knows what could’ve been, eh?’

‘I suppose so,’ shrugged Harry. He fell silent for a moment. ‘Um ... Hagrid ... can I ask your opinion on something?’

‘Sure, go ahead,’ said Hagrid.

‘Well, Hermione and I were talking the other day, and -’ Harry briefly relayed the same story he told Ron and Ginny earlier.

Hagrid mused. ‘Well, I’ve known both o’ yeh fer a long time now, and it’s clear to anyone tha’ she’s very fond of you.’

‘Mmm,’ said Harry as he drank his tea.

‘But ... well, do you know how yer parents got together, Harry?’ asked Hagrid gently.

‘Kind of,’ said Harry. ‘Why do you ask?’

‘Well, she always had a bit of a soft spot fer him, but it took ‘im gettin’ some maturin’ done before she would actually start goin’ out with him,’ Hagrid explained.

‘Right, but what’s that got to do with Hermione?’ asked Harry confusedly.

‘Well, I’m not sayin’ it does,’ said Hagrid. ‘I’m just saying tha’ – well, yeh never really know how these things can turn out, do you? My advice would be ter just talk to her about all this.’

Harry sighed. ‘I guess you’re right,’ he mumbled. ‘I just don’t want to scare her off, you know?’

‘Not our Hermione,’ chuckled Hagrid. ‘Remember in yer third year when you were fightin’ over yer broomstick? She still cared for yeh. Heart in the righ’ place, tha’ girl.’

‘Yeah,’ mumbled Harry, feeling a sudden twinge of guilt at Hagrid’s words. Had he ever properly apologised to Hermione for being such an arse that year?

‘And besides, maybe it’ll be a little awkward fer a little while if she turns you down, but both of yeh would move on from it. She’s stuck by you fer this long, eh?’ said Hagrid earnestly. He then clapped Harry on the shoulder, which almost felt like being hit by a bludger.

‘Thanks, Hagrid,’ winced Harry as he rubbed his shoulder.

‘Think nothin’ of it,’ he said gruffly, waving one of his dustbin lid-sized hands. ‘Now, how about some rock cakes? I made some this mornin’.

‘Why not?’ smiled Harry, silently hoping that he won’t break his teeth on them. He sat quietly while Hagrid bustled about the hut, and he let his mind drift as he reminisced on all the times that he’d visited Hagrid ever since he first came to Hogwarts. He chuckled to himself as he recalled when Nobert (Noberta, Harry reminded himself), the Norwegian Ridgeback hatched in front of him, Hermione and Ron at the very table he was sitting at, and the great lengths he and Hermione went through to carry the large, heavy crate up to the tallest tower for Charlie Weasley’s friends to take away.

 _S_ _he’s my best friend_ , thought Harry, as he accepted the rock cake that Hagrid handed to him. _She’s always been there for_ _me._ _Hell,_ _for all of_ _us._ He nibbled on the rock cake tentatively as he tried to imagine himself on a date with Hermione, and what it would be like to kiss her. _But do I really want more?_

*

Over the next few days, Hagrid’s advice weighed heavily on Harry’s mind as he tried to think of different ways to act on Hagrid’s advice. Despite feeling quite certain that he has feelings for Hermione, he found it rather difficult to come up with something to say that concerns dating and relationships when he was around her, not the least of which was because he’d feel himself getting tongue-tied and end up quickly changing the subject each time he tried.

He’s also been catching himself gazing at Hermione at random intervals. Whether it was in the library, in the Common Room, or even during a meal in the Great Hall, his eyes would drift unconsciously towards her for a brief moment before forcing himself to look elsewhere, only to find himself looking at her again a few seconds later. He was almost sure that she’d noticed his staring a couple of times, but it was thankfully never mentioned. He didn’t think he could quite come up with a good enough excuse to make it seem like it was nothing. In a moment of desperation, he considered consulted his copy of _Twelve Fail-Safe Ways to Charm Witches_ but quickly decided against it. While it might seem oddly fitting to flirt with Hermione through the help of a book, Harry preferred trying to do things on his merit. Knowing that Ron had used the book himself to flirt and briefly date Hermione also made him feel a little bit uncomfortable.

 _It not as if I can suddenly spring it on her out of nowhere,_ Harry kept telling himself. _I just need a good excuse to get me going first._

Yet it was not until the year’s first Hogsmeade weekend that inspiration struck him. After the war, the quaint little village had slowly started to rebuild itself after the turmoilous year that its residents had. Knowing that Ron will more than likely not be joining them since he’ll be too busy hanging out with Lavender instead, Harry decided to suggest to Hermione for them to spend the day together instead, with hopes that the village’s charm will help him express the way he’s been feeling about her lately. However, knowing his intentions of asking her to accompany him were beyond those of a friend were playing a number on his nerves. It did not help that Hermione had chosen that week to be rather busy with her work, so Harry’s chances of cornering her were slim.

It was not until the day before, when he spotted her quietly pouring over some books for a homework essay in a mostly empty Gryffindor Common Room late at night, that he seized his chance.

‘Hey, Hermione?’ he tentatively asked, in the hopes that his voice will not betray how nervous he was feeling.

‘Hmm?’ said Hermione, her head still bent over her work.

Wishing fervently that he still had some Felix Felicis to help take the edge off, he continued, ‘So I was thinking about Hogsmeade tomorrow, and –’

‘Oh, I forgot to tell you!’ said Hermione, suddenly looking up at him. ‘I have a date with Terry Boot tomorrow!’

Harry’s heart stopped. His nerves were suddenly gone, along with seemingly any feeling in his body.

‘You have a date tomorrow? Really?’ he said, his throat suddenly very dry.

‘Well, no need to sound so surprised,’ she said mirthfully, while rolling her eyes. ‘We’ll probably just go to the Three Broomsticks and have a few Butterbeers or something. It’s not a big deal or anything.’

Yet the way she was smiling made it seem like it _was_ a big deal, Harry figured.

‘Anyway, what did you want to tell me?’ asked Hermione.

His insides now suddenly writhing like snakes, Harry swallowed heavily and lamely said, ‘Well, I figured since Ron – well, anyway, you have a date now, so don’t worry about it.’ He then gave her what he hoped was a passable smile.

Hermione gave him a strange look. His insides writhed even harder.

‘Are you alright, Harry?’ she asked, her voice full of concern.

Harry nodded, although he truly felt anything but.

‘Harry, it’s just one date. I’m not going to up and abandon you, you know,’ she said gently. She patted his hand, and Harry felt his heart climb up to this throat. ‘Remember the conversation we had a couple of weeks ago? There’s not much else that we can do about what happened with our past relationships. I certainly don’t want to mope around, so this is just me putting myself out there a little. And Terry seems very nice, so it might turn out to be fun. And even if it isn’t, it’s not the end of the world. I mean, I personally don’t much fancy the idea of spinsterhood, and since you’re the only male person that I socialise with on a daily basis, my choice for dates is quite thin on the ground if I don’t start socialising a little more. Well, unless you and I start dating, but we both know that’s never going to happen,’ she added sensibly.

‘Well ... yeah, I suppose so,’ mumbled Harry, a feeling of defeat washing over him.

‘Exactly,’ beamed Hermione. ‘I’m glad you understand, Harry.’ She yawned widely, her hand covering her mouth. ‘Sorry, I didn’t get a lot of sleep yesterday. Head Girl duties, you know.’

‘Right, sure,’ said Harry, suddenly remembering that Terry Boot was Head Boy. He silently cursed himself for telling Professor McGonagall that he didn’t want the position when she offered it to him this summer, opting instead for having a quiet year instead. ‘Listen, why don’t I leave you to it then? I’m sure you’d rather get back to your essay.’ Hermione smiled appreciatively before saying goodnight.

As he entered his dormitory, he collapsed on his four-poster bed and sighed bitterly.

‘Great,’ he muttered angrily. ‘Just wonderful. Perfect timing, Potter.’

He let his mind wander for a moment, as to try and think of reasons why Hermione would go out with someone like Terry Boot. _Well, he’s in Ravenclaw, so I guess he’s supposedly intelligent like her,_ Harry thought reasonably _. And he was always in awe of her. Like when she did that spell on the D.A. coin_ s _in our fifth year_. Yet this only made him feel worse, and by the time Ron clamoured up into their dormitory and got into his bed, Harry was fuming at how he didn’t take the initiative sooner and asked Hermione out before Terry did.

 _Git,_ he thought bitterly, as he turned his pillow over for the umpteenth time in a futile effort to finally find a comfortable enough position in order to get some sleep.

The next day, Harry woke up feeling even more tired and bitter than when he had gone to bed. No longer at the mercy of being woken up by Hermione anymore (his stomach twisted into a knot just thinking her name), he stared at the roof at his canopy and genuinely considered just staying in bed all day.

He heard Ron yawn from the next bed over.

‘Morning Harry,’ mumbled Ron from the next bed over, interrupting his thoughts. ‘What time is it?’

‘It’s almost nine,’ said Harry after checking his watch.

‘Bugger, I’m supposed to meet Lav in an hour,’ he yawned. ‘Mind if I shower first?’

‘Sure,’ nodded Harry.

‘Cheers,’ said Ron as he got to his feet and stretched. He shot Harry a quizzical look. ‘You alright, mate? You look like hell.’

‘Thanks,’ Harry said sarcastically.

‘Well, nothing like a trip to Honeydukes to cheer you up, eh?’ grinned Ron.

‘I don’t think I’m going into Hogsmeade today, Ron,’ said Harry quietly.

‘What? Why the hell not?’ gaped Ron. ‘Are you feeling ill or something?’

‘Not exactly, no,’ said Harry quietly.

‘Then what is it?’ asked Ron. ‘It’s Hogsmeade, mate. Why the hell would you want to skip it? Come on, even George is going to be there. He’s coming up to check out Zonko’s ‘cos he’s thinking about turning it another Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. And besides, what about Hermione? You don’t want her to be all alone, do you?’

‘She won’t be alone, Ron.’ sighed Harry heavily. ‘She’s got a date.’

Ron’s suddenly was a lot more alert. ‘A date? With who?’ he demanded, his eyes narrowing.

‘Terry Boot,’ mumbled Harry.

‘TERRY –’

‘Yes, Terry Boot, Ron,’ snapped Harry. ‘Yell louder, why don’t you?’

‘Seriously, that prat?’ said Ron.

‘He’s not so bad,’ shrugged Harry, although he privately couldn’t help agreeing with Ron.

‘But what about you?’ asked Ron.

‘What do you mean?’ said Harry.

‘Well, I mean, I thought you liked her now. Wait - is that why you don’t want to go into Hogsmeade today?’ he demanded.

Harry shrugged again.

Ron stared at him for a moment and looked like he was wrestling with a thought. Finally, he asked, ‘Did I ever tell you why Hermione and I broke up?’

Harry shook his head, surprised at the sudden turn of conversation.

‘I thought not,’ said Ron. ‘You just know about that talk we had, right?’

Harry nodded.

‘Well, the first couple of months were good. Great, even. I mean, yeah, we bickered and argued a lot, but it was all in good fun, you know? It’s not like we didn’t agree on stuff, ‘cos we did. And truthfully, it’s kinda fun riling her up a little. Seeing her get all fiery and passionate – well, I think it’s sexy,’ he said, his cheeks slightly flushed.

Unable to stifle it, Harry let out a loud snort.

‘Hey, don’t laugh, you git,’ said Ron indignantly.

‘Sorry,’ said Harry with a smile. ‘It’s just ... well, I sort of know what you mean.’

‘Oh,’ said Ron, his cheeks now even redder. ‘Anyway, stuff kind of kept getting in the way. All those funerals and things – they kept dampening what little mood there was. Yeah, I could get her to laugh here and there, but she seemed really distant a lot of the time. And there was that whole thing with her parents, and we didn’t see much of each other when she went to Australia to get them back. That always annoyed me, you know. I mean, I was her boyfriend. Why didn’t she want me to go to Australia with her?’

‘Didn’t she say she wanted to apologise to them for what happened or something, and that she’d rather do it on her own?’ said Harry.

‘Yeah, I know. It just felt weird somehow, like she was trying to avoid me. Then – I dunno, I guess my insecurities started to catch up with me a little. Oh, I didn’t think she was cheating or anything, Merlin no,’ he added hurriedly, catching Harry’s raised eyebrow. ‘It’s just – well, we were already not spending a lot of time together, and here was a chance for me and her to do something together, and she didn’t want me there. And then you and Ginny broke up when she got back, and that’s when she asked me if we could talk.’ Ron sighed heavily before continuing, ‘I tried to avoid it, but it was inevitable. She sat me down and she made me talk about my feelings and then she told me how she was feeling and it was a big, messy argument but we decided that maybe it’s best to put things on hold for a little while.’

‘Wait, but how did you end up with Lavender again if you put things on hold with Hermione? I mean, did you ever actually break up with her?’ asked Harry.

Ron hesitated. ‘Well, when we came back here, we just bumped into each other and we got to talking a little, and I realised how different she seemed. Me and her - it’s not just snogging anymore. And what with the scars that Greyback gave her, she seemed sensitive about them, but I didn’t mind them, especially after Bill. And she really appreciated that.’

‘So you two got together ‘cos you saw her inner beauty?’ smirked Harry. ‘But what about Hermione?’

‘She cornered me one night, and we talked a little about how we’ve been carrying on ever since we put things on hold, and we ended things then,’ said Ron. ‘And as much as I love Hermione, dating her wasn't as easy as I hoped it would be. I thought maybe it was just a matter of our timing being a little off, and that we could maybe try again soon, but she seemed happy when we put things on hold. Maybe she was just hiding her real feelings, I dunno. I thought she was for a while, but maybe I was wrong.’

‘You weren’t,’ said Harry quietly. ‘That day when she told me that she used to like me – well, we talked about you and her for a little while as well. She’s a bit put out that you started dating Lavender so soon after you two ended things. It’s one of the reasons she’s going out with Terry Boot today.’

‘Wow. It’s just like when she went on that date with McLaggen to Slughorn’s party,’ said Ron.

‘Not this time,’ sighed Harry. ‘She told me she wants to put herself out there properly this time.’

‘Ah, right,’ said Ron unhelpfully. ‘But I’m confused. Do you actually want to go out with her or not?’

‘Does it matter?’ said Harry bitterly. ‘She’s going out with Terry now.’

‘Mate, it’s just one date,’ said Ron. ‘Maybe she’ll see him for the prat that he is, and she’ll come running to you!’

‘Okay, seriously, why are you so calm about this?’ demanded Harry. ‘Need I remind you about the stuff that you saw in that locket?’

Ron’s face paled. ‘No, you don’t,’ he said. ‘But I’d rather she dates you than that git. At least I know you’ll treat her right.’

‘Well, it’s no use. I’ve missed my chance now,’ said Harry.

‘Yeah, well, I’ve been there mate,’ said Ron quietly. ‘And I really need to shower now, so – ’

‘Just one thing,’ said Harry. ‘Why are you telling all this for?’

Ron shrugged. ‘Maybe you’ll have better luck with her than I did,’ he said.

Harry stared at him. ‘You’ve really moved on from her, huh?’

Ron grimaced. ‘Kind of. Look, I still love her, and I’d probably jump at the chance to date her again if I happen to be unattached, but I honestly doubt that I’ll ever get that chance.’

Harry nodded. ‘Sure, I understand.’

‘Good,’ said Ron. ‘Now, if you don’t mind – ’

‘Right, sure,’ said Harry. He laid back down on his bed and digested all that he had just learnt. He never knew the details surrounding Ron and Hermione’s breakup. Up until that point, Harry just knew that they had that one talk.

So Ron didn’t just go stick his tongue down Lavender’s throat after all, he thought. Looks like he doesn’t have the emotional range of a teaspoon anymore.

He felt a knot in his stomach as he recalled that conversation from almost three years ago, and how he now knew that it was that night that Hermione had decided to give up on his as a romantic prospect. Yet will he ever get a chance to tell Hermione how he feels about her now, or will he be forced to do the same and give up on her like she once did?

*

The day seemed to drag on even longer than usual, Harry thought, as he somehow managed to drag himself out of bed and up to the library in an attempt to try and get some homework done. Try as he might, his mind refused to focus on the work at hand; he couldn’t help fervently wishing that Hermione was here next to him, instead of with Terry in Hogsmeade. With Ron dating Lavender, and only a handful of the Gryffindors in his year choosing to come back to Hogwarts for an eighth year, he had gotten used to constantly having Hermione around. And as hard as he tried, he couldn’t stop thinking about Hermione, and what she could be doing on her date.

It was finally dusk when everyone finally came back up to the castle. Having not made much progress on his work, Harry decided to put his stuff up his dormitory before going down for dinner. Unfortunately for him, he happened to spot Terry holding Hermione’s hand as he accompanied her to the Fat Lady’s portrait. Struggling to control his jealousy he waited until Hermione had gone in before entering the Common Room.

Dinner was also a quiet affair. Hermione seemed lost in thought, while Ron was busy talking and laughing with Lavender. Harry quickly bolted something down and went back up to the Common Room, wishing nothing more for the day to end. Finding it empty, he decided to try continuing the essay that he tried to work on in the library, only for his mind to plague him with thoughts of Terry holding Hermione’s hand, of Terry and Hermione talking and laughing as they walked through Hogsmeade together, of Terry kissing Hermione –

‘Harry?’ said a soft voice tentatively in his ear.

Hermione was sitting next to him, shaking him awake. Realising he must have dozed off, he looked up.

‘Hey,’ he said as he tried to smile. ‘Where’s everyone?’

‘Still at dinner,’ said Hermione. ‘Why did you leave so quickly?’

‘I wasn’t hungry,’ he mumbled.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. ‘Well, I barely had anything either. I was worried about you. Did you even go to Hogsmeade?’

‘Nope,’ said Harry. Hermione gave him an odd look. ‘I wasn’t in the mood,’ he said, not entirely untruthful.

‘Well, let’s sit by the fire,’ Hermione suggested. She took out her wand and waved it. All of Harry’s things packed themselves neatly in his bag.

‘There,’ she said with a small smile. ‘Come, let’s go on the sofa.’

She took Harry’s bag in one hand and Harry’s hand in the other and led him to one of the sofas next to the crackling fire.

‘Harry,’ she began as she sat down. ‘Are you ok? You’ve never missed a Hogsmeade weekend before.’

Harry decided to try and shrug it off. ‘I told you, I wasn’t in the mood,’ he said.

‘Really?’ said Hermione in disbelief.

‘Really,’ said Harry firmly.

‘Right,’ said Hermione. ‘And this has nothing to do with my date?’

Harry was suddenly on high alert. ‘No, of course not,’ he lied. ‘What gave you that idea?’

‘I don’t know, Harry,’ said Hermione tiredly. ‘You’ve been acting a little odd ever since I told you I have a date yesterday. And honestly, there’s nothing to worry about. Terry was really nice. We went to Scrivenshaft's because he wanted a new quill, and then we went to Honeydukes and then we went to The Three Broomsticks for some Butterbeer. And I wish you told me you weren’t going today. I would have gotten you some sweets or something.’

‘It’s not a big deal Hermione, honestly,’ said Harry, trying to hide how downcast he was feeling. He wished Hermione would stop mentioning her date.

‘Fine, but please promise me you won’t hole yourself up here again,’ said Hermione. ‘I don’t know if this thing with Terry is going anywhere, but like I told you yesterday, I’m not going to abandon you! And it’s not as if it’s anything serious. I mean, we didn’t kiss or anything.’ Her cheeks turned a little red as she said this, but Harry didn’t notice. He was suddenly feeling strangely elated.

 _He didn’t kiss her,_ the little voice in his head said.

Yeah, but so what? he thought.

 _So maybe you give her one_ , said the little voice snidely.

Are you insane?! I can’t do that!

_Why not? Like she said, it’s nothing serious._

It doesn’t mean that I should kiss her!

_What if you never get another chance though?_

‘Harry, what is it? What going on?’ she asked him worriedly. She grasped his hands and squeezed them. Harry felt his stomach do a somersault. As she looked into his eyes, he felt his body act on its own accord. Before realising what he was about to do, and before he had any chance of stopping himself, he kissed her. Her lips were soft, and he could taste a mix of Butterbeer and Honeydukes chocolate on her breath. Somehow, this brought him to his senses, and he quickly broke apart from her.

Hermione stared at him, her mouth gaping open slightly. Before Harry realised what was about to happen, he heard Hermione’s hand whizz through the air and felt it land a rather loud slap on his face.

‘Ouch!’ yelped Harry, rubbing his smarting cheek.

‘What the _hell_ was that for?’ said Hermione angrily. ‘What on earth gave you the idea that I wanted you to kiss me?! Is this some sick, twisted joke of yours?!’

‘I’m sorry, I just –’ spluttered Harry.

‘Oh, you’d better be sorry!’ hissed Hermione as she got up. ‘I can’t believe you, Harry! Who the hell goes around kissing their friends like that?’

‘No, I –’

‘Honestly, I don’t want to hear it. I’m so appalled with you right now, you have no idea –’

‘Hermione, I’m sorry! Please, just give me a chance to explain myself!’ begged Harry.

Hermione fumed. ‘Make it quick,’ she spat.

‘Look, I – I know it sounds stupid, but – well, I couldn’t help myself,’ he said, cursing himself at how lame his explanation was sounding.

Hermione raised her eyebrows. ‘Excuse me?’ she said while gritting her teeth.

‘No, I didn’t mean it like that!’ he said hurriedly, wishing the ground would just swallow him up. ‘I’m sorry, I’ve been trying to think of ways to tell how I feel for a while now, but –’

‘Wait,’ said Hermione sternly. ‘Is this your roundabout way of telling me that you fancy me, Harry?’ she asked, her raised eyebrows in danger of disappearing in her bushy hair.

Harry nodded nervously. ‘Yeah, I guess it kind of is,’ he said with a weak chuckle.

Hermione gave him a look filled with utter contempt. ‘You think this is _funny_?’ she growled. ‘I was talking to you about how my date with Terry went, and you think that it’s appropriate for you to just kiss me?’

'No, of course not,' he mumbled, groaning inwardly at his lack of tact.

‘Good, because it isn’t’, she snapped. She took a deep breath. ‘Whatever I told you last time about me liking you, it was all in the past. I’ve moved on, Harry. And I really think you should as well.’

Harry nodded, his heart broken. ‘Okay, whatever you say’, he said quietly.

Hermione sighed. ‘I’m off to bed,’ she said. ‘I’ve had a long day, and the last thing I needed was this.’ She gave Harry one last look. ‘Goodnight Harry,’ she said softly. She turned, and Harry heard her climb up the steps to her dormitory. Yet he didn’t look up. Instead, he looked at the roaring flames in the fireplace, and desperately wished he could throw himself into them instead of having to endure Hermione's resentment in the morning.


	3. The Gratification

‘And that’s when I kissed her,’ said Harry quietly, trying hard to ignore Ron’s gaping look the next morning at breakfast.

‘ _You kissed_ –’

‘Be quiet,’ hissed Harry. ‘Yes, I kissed her, and it was the stupidest thing that I could have done. I don’t know what the hell came over me, but it just felt like the thing to do for some reason.’

‘The thing to do?’ said Ron incredulously.

‘I know, it sounds really bad when I say it like that,’ groaned Harry. ‘You didn’t see the look she gave me. I disgusted her, Ron.’

Ron let out a low whistle. ‘Merlin, you’ve really screwed up now, mate. What are you going to do?’

‘I don’t know, do I?’ moaned Harry. ‘I’ve already apologised to her and I want to do it again, but I honestly don’t think she’ll ever talk to me again after last night.’

‘Well, here she comes now,’ whispered Ron. ‘Just let me do all the talking, ok?’ Raising his voice slightly, he said, ‘Morning, Hermione! Sleep well?’

‘Good morning, Ron,’ said Hermione, her voice suspiciously cheerful. Harry was dismayed that she did not meet his eye and got a distinct feeling that she was deliberately ignoring him. ‘Yes, I did. How about you?’

‘Like a log,’ he said.

‘Good to know,’ she smiled. ‘I’m just going to grab something quick. I’ve got a little study session with Terry in the library this morning,’ she said, her smile growing wider. She lightly grabbed a muffin from the tray in front of Harry and took a neat little bite, showing off her perfect teeth as she did. ‘Well, enjoy your Sunday, Ron,’ she said as she walked towards the Ravenclaw table.

‘Merlin’s pants, that was brutal,’ breathed Ron. ‘I almost forgot what it’s like when she gets mad at someone. It’s scary how good she is at acting calm when she’s angry.’

Harry nodded, his throat feeling too constricted to say anything. Instead, he grabbed his goblet of pumpkin juice and took a sip. Unfortunately, its refreshing taste did little to soothe the tightly lodged ball of emotion in this throat.

‘I think I’m going for a walk,’ he croaked. He rose up from the Gryffindor table and, trying hard to ignore Hermione’s loud laughter, made his way quickly out of the Great Hall. Biting back a sudden urge to yell, he kept on marching forward until he was finally out of the Entrance Hall and into the grounds. He kept up his stride as he unconsciously made his way to the Quidditch Pitch. Finding it completely deserted, he took out his wand and summoned one of the school brooms, an ancient Shooting Star, from the broomshed. A few seconds later, he was finally back in the air. Grimacing at the Shooting Star’s lack of speed and slightly unsteady behaviour, he nevertheless enjoyed soaring around the goalposts, momentarily forgetting his problems.

‘Hey, Harry,’ someone yelled out.

Harry looked and saw Ginny and Luna Lovegood sitting down on the grass. He pointed the Shooting Star downward and managed to land neatly next to them.

‘Looking good out there,’ grinned Ginny. ‘Thinking about trying out for seeker again? Although I daresay you’ll need something better than that,’ she added, pointing at the miserable condition of the Shooting Star that Harry was just riding.

‘Your team will do just fine without me,’ shrugged Harry. ‘How are you, Luna?’

‘I’m very well, thank you,’ she said lightly. ‘You seem rather distressed, Harry,’ she continued. ‘Would you like to talk about it?’

‘No need,’ said Harry gruffly, as the same lump in his throat from before started to swell again.

‘Ron told me what happened, Harry,’ said Ginny gently. ‘Yes, you messed up. Big time. But you apologised, and it’s not like Hermione’s never going to talk to you again.’

‘Yeah, well, I’m sure she’d rather hang out with Terry bloody Boot than with me after what happened,’ he said bitterly.

‘Oh, I wouldn’t say that,’ said Luna thoughtfully. ‘She looked rather worried when you ran out of the Great Hall this morning. I think she’s only trying to make you feel a little guilty and a little jealous.’

‘Jealous?’ said Harry in disbelief. ‘Why would she want to make me feel jealous?’

‘Harry, last night you kissed a girl who, according to you, spent years repressing any romantic feelings she had towards you.’ said Ginny patiently. ‘No matter how well she did it, it was bound to have come rushing back when you snogged her,’ she grinned.

‘I didn’t snog her,’ muttered Harry ‘It was just a normal kiss.’

‘What, no tongue?’ teased Ginny. Noticing Harry’s glum look, she added, ‘Listen, it’ll all blow over soon. Just give it some time. She’ll come around; I promise.’

Harry shrugged in response.

Ginny sighed. ‘Why don’t you come back up to the Common Room, Harry? she said. ‘Hermione’s in the library, so she won’t be near you.’

‘No thanks,’ said Harry firmly. ‘I think I’ll just stay here and fly around a little.’

‘As you wish,’ shrugged Ginny. ‘Come on, Luna. Let’s go and bother Ron and Lavender,’ she said as she got up.

Luna nodded and got up as well. To Harry’s utter surprise, she gave him a hug.

‘Luna – ’ he said stiffly.

‘Don’t worry, Harry,’ she whispered in his ear. ‘Hermione really cares about you. She won’t ever forget you.’

‘Right,’ he said awkwardly, as she let go. ‘Thanks.’

‘No problem,’ she said, smiling sweetly at him. Taking Ginny’s hand, the two of them walked out of the pitch. Harry stared at them longingly, suddenly wishing he could go with them. Yet the amount of anger that he was feeling at himself was still too raw to process properly. He took a deep breath and felt his eyes start to well up.

 _This is stupid,_ he thought. He swung his leg over the Shooting Star, readying himself to kick off from the ground again. Instead, a wave of fury overwhelmed him so much that he chucked away the Shooting Star as hard as he could, feeling a brief sense of satisfaction when it landed a good way away from him with a loud thud.

*

Despite Ginny’s and Luna’s promise of Hermione coming around, Harry was disappointed to see that she didn’t. Instead, she continued to deliberately ignore Harry, while constantly dropping little titbits about Terry whenever Harry seemed to be in earshot. This irritated him to no end, yet he tried his best to not lose his temper, knowing it was his actions that should be blamed for having turned Hermione against him, and not Hermione herself. Yet her absence started to deeply affect him in several different ways. In classes, Hermione had stopped partnering with him during lessons, choosing instead to partner with Terry. Ron usually ended up partnering with him, but Harry knew he’d much rather be partnering with Lavender. This preference was especially noticeable whenever he would occasionally sit with Ron and Lavender at mealtimes. Their obvious closeness made him feel rather lonely, and it only made him wish even harder that he and Hermione were back on speaking terms. He also loathed the look that Ron would give him, as if he were a patient lying sick in bed.

He also started to find himself alone for long stretches at a time. With all of his teachers constantly reminding them that their N.E.W.T.s are coming up this year, he thought it would be a good idea to use this time to start revising, knowing how much harder it will be now that Hermione won’t be there to help him out. During his free periods, he’d try and seek out quiet places where he can try and get his work done without being interrupted, and spent a lot of his time up in his dormitory if Hermione was in the Common Room. He felt less distracted when he didn’t think about her, yet he only missed her more and more each day, something which he tried desperately hard to ignore. He also took to carrying the Marauders Map around with him so that he can try and avoid seeing Hermione with Terry whenever he was going somewhere. Having memorised nearly all of Hogwarts’ secret shortcuts, he found it quite easy to sidestep them should he happen to encounter either of them in the corridors.

Unfortunately, the one place where he couldn’t escape Hermione is when he had to look up stuff for his homework in the library. He tried to go whenever she wasn’t there, but it wasn’t always possible to do so. The times when she wasn’t there, Harry took advantage of the opportunity and spent as much time there as he could trying to get his work done, but it was easier said than done. Instead of focusing on his essays, he’d always find himself looking at the table that he and Hermione used to share, reminiscing on all the times that they’d sat there talking in hushed tones, less they ensure Madam Pince’s wrath.

It had been just about a little over week now since he had kissed her. Harry had spent the first part of his day trying to focus on his lessons, while ignoring every time Hermione answered a teacher’s question. Thankfully, he had a free period after and, remembering that Hermione had Ancient Runes, he rushed off to the library to try and get some work done. He took a seat at his usual small table and started going over his Transfiguration essay about Human Transfiguration, mentally reminding himself to look up more information on Metamorphmagi. He instinctively thought of Teddy Lupin and smiled as he remembered the baby’s gurgling noises every time he had held him in his arms when he used to visit him over the summer.

‘Hey, Harry,’ said a voice quietly.

Still thinking about Teddy, Harry looked up and, to his utter astonishment, saw that it was Hermione.

‘What do you want?’ he asked, quelling his emotions. ‘Don’t you have Ancient Runes?’

‘Professor Babbling is off sick. And I wanted to talk to you,’ she said softly. She sat down opposite him and took a deep breath. ‘I’m sorry I slapped you. Although you did deserve it. Your behaviour was rather inappropriate.’

‘I know,’ mumbled Harry, trying to ignore the wave of guilt riding through him.

‘Yes, but you and I have been friends for years,’ said Hermione as she looked into his eyes. ‘The least I could have done is at least let you explain yourself properly. I know you’d never do anything to intentionally hurt me. You just took me by surprise, and I honestly didn’t know how to process it.’ She grimaced. ‘I know it’s not much of an apology, but -’

‘Hermione, it’s fine. It’s my fault, all of it. I shouldn’t have kissed you,’ said Harry hurriedly.

‘No, you shouldn’t have,’ agreed Hermione, her eyes never leaving his face.

Harry nodded. ‘I’m sorry, okay? I mean it.’

‘I know.’ She stood up. ‘I’m going to go sit with Terry. See you later, Harry.’

‘Yeah, see you,’ mumbled Harry. He watched as Hermione made her way towards the table that they used to share. Terry was already there, grinning at her as she sat down next to him. Feeling like he had just swallowed a particularly nasty infusion of Gurdyroots, he stood up and marched straight out of the library while failing to notice Hermione’s concerned look as he did.

*

‘I told you she’ll come round!’ said Ginny later at dinner. Harry had decided to sit with her today since Ron and Lavender where nowhere to be found, although he had a sneaking suspicion that they were probably off being overly affectionate in a broom cupboard somewhere.

Harry shrugged. ‘She didn’t really say much.’

‘Well, it’s better than nothing,’ Ginny argued. ‘And besides, she’s been trying to catch your eye ever since she sat down.’

‘What, really?’ said Harry as he hurriedly looked around, only to see that Hermione was still sitting next to Terry over at the Ravenclaw table. He gave Ginny a dark look, which she responded with a smirk.

‘So gullible,’ she chortled as Harry stabbed a potato out of frustration. ‘You really have the hots for her, don’t you?’

‘What difference does it make to you?’ he asked pointedly.

‘It doesn’t’ shrugged Ginny. ‘I just care about your wellbeing. Just because you’re my ex doesn’t mean you've stopped being my friend, you know.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Harry quietly.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ said Ginny, patting him on the back. ‘You miss your best friend. Of course you’re going to be a bit of a pain in the arse.’ She smirked. ‘Oh, and speaking of which, here she comes now!’

Harry snorted. ‘I’m not falling for that one again, Gin -’

‘Hey, Harry. Do you have a second?’

Harry looked and saw Hermione giving him a small smile. ‘Would you like to study together tonight?’ she asked. ‘We can stay in the Common Room, if you want.’

‘Um ... sure,’ he croaked out.

‘Great. I’ll see you in a bit, ok?’ she said, hurrying off again.

‘Looks like you’ve got a study date tonight,’ said Ginny suggestively, waggling her eyebrows. Harry rolled his eyes in derision, despite secretly wishing it would indeed turn out to be one, even though he knew it was impossible. His thoughts were later confirmed when Hermione later joined him in the Common Room and immediately started to go over his work, criticising his weaker points and suggesting improvements. Slowly, they worked quietly through the evening, pausing only to politely ask each other a question related to the work that they were doing.

‘Thanks,’ said Harry gratefully when she handed over the Transfiguration essay that he had tried to work on earlier in the library.

‘You’re welcome,’ said Hermione. ‘You know, for someone who is a godfather to a Metamorphmagus, one would assume you’d know a little more about the subject than you’re letting on,’ she said pointedly, albeit with a teasing smile.

‘Yeah, probably,’ yawned Harry. It was quite late by now. Ron and Lavender had sauntered in only a few minutes ago looking rather dishevelled and wished them a sheepish goodnight, but everyone else had already gone to bed.

‘Have you been sleeping lately?’ asked Hermione. ‘You look rather tired.’

Harry shrugged. Truthfully, he had been so focused on trying to avoid bumping into Hermione that the actual time that he ended up devoting to his studies throughout the day didn’t amount to much, which resulted in him having to stay up for longer than he would have liked in order to catch up. To make matters even more frustrating, the dreams that he’d been having lately all seemed to revolve Hermione in such ways he felt rather uncomfortably hot under the collar when recalling them while sitting in next to her.

‘Well, you do,’ said Hermione, interrupting his thoughts. ‘Just because you’re avoiding me doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get a good night’s sleep.’

Harry suddenly felt wide awake. ‘Um, no. You’re the one who started avoiding me,’ he pointed out.

‘That may be, but you’re certainly going out of your way to vanish every time I’m near you,’ said Hermione as she lowered her quill. ‘Quite frankly, I half-expected you to start going around the castle underneath the Invisibility Cloak.’

‘You know, I never actually considered that,’ said Harry in mock solemness.

‘I certainly hope you didn’t!’ said Hermione indignantly, ignoring Harry’s tone of voice.

‘Well, what difference would it have made to you?’ demanded Harry. ‘I wanted to apologise again and again for how I acted, but you wouldn’t even look at me.’

Hermione sighed. ‘You’re right. I didn’t want to look at you the next day. That night, I really loathed you. I just couldn’t understand what came over you. It’s not as if you’ve ever shown the slightest interest in me. I mean, the one time I go on a date with someone, you kiss me. Who does that, Harry?’

‘Me, apparently,’ said Harry. ‘But it’s not like I decided to just do it out of nowhere. I’ve been wanting to ask you for weeks now! I was even going to ask if you wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me the night before!’

Hermione looked at him with surprise. ‘You were going to ask me out?’

‘Yes,’ sighed Harry. ‘I know it sounds stupid, but when you told me that you used to like me, it’s like everything started to make sense. Having it spelt out for me the way it was – it just made started to make sense, you know?’

Hermione glanced at her watch. ‘It’s late,’ she said, waving her wand until all their belongings were back in their bags. ‘This is really not something that we should be discussing now.’

‘Sure, ok,’ mumbled Harry defeatedly.

Hermione suddenly squeezed his hand. ‘Thank you for being honest with me, Harry,’ she whispered. ‘Now please go to bed. You look exhausted.’ She grabbed his bag and handed it to him. Harry grabbed it, stood up and slung it over his shoulder. ‘Goodnight,’ she said quietly.

Harry nodded. ‘Goodnight, Hermione,’ he said as he made his way up the steps to his dormitory, where he promptly passed out on his bed. He slept so soundly that it took Ron hitting him with a well-aimed _Aguamenti_ charm to finally wake up the next morning. After spluttering a few select swear words in between Ron’s guffaws, Harry dried himself off quickly with a wave of his wand and got dressed. Ron had already left while he was getting changed so he could meet up with Lavender, so Harry grabbed his bag and made his way to breakfast alone. To his surprise, Hermione was sitting at the Gryffindor table and smiled at him as he made his way over.

‘Good morning, Harry,’ said Hermione brightly as he sat down, his bag hitting the floor with a rather loud thud. ‘You look like you’ve slept well.’

‘I did actually,’ he said, feeling strangely elated.

‘Good,’ she said. She looked at him and arched an eyebrow. ‘Aren’t you going to sit down?’

‘Oh, yeah,’ said Harry as he sat down next to her. Ignoring how his stomach suddenly seemed to be in knots, he asked, ‘How come you’re sitting here today?’

Hermione took a bite from a piece of toast and chewed carefully before lightly saying, ‘I missed talking to you.’

‘Really?’ asked Harry before he could stop himself.

Hermione rolled her eyes. ‘Honestly Harry, I’ve been your friend for this long and you see fit to question if I miss talking to you?’

‘It’s not that. It’s just – well, you seemed perfectly happy with Terry,’ he said, feeling his throat go dry at the mention of Terry’s name.

‘I am,’ nodded Hermione. Harry now felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, which he desperately tried to ignore. ‘But it doesn’t mean that I don’t miss talking to you. I told you, I’m not going to abandon you even if I date someone. I just needed a little space, that’s all.’

Harry’s spirits lifted a little at these last few words, yet it was all short-lived. Terry Boot had just strolled into the Great Hall for breakfast as well, and Hermione excused herself to go and sit with him. Having now lost his appetite, he picked up his bag and attempted to leave the Great Hall in what he hoped was a casual manner and started to make his way to the library. Halfway there, he paused and started to head off in a completely different direction. He wasn’t too sure himself where he was going until he finally arrived. He had made his way up to the seventh floor and made his way near a tapestry showing Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls to dance the ballet.

To Harry’s disbelief, the door to the Room of Requirement appeared. In all the time he had been back at Hogwarts, he never bothered to check if Ron was right in assuming the Room of Requirement wouldn’t work anymore after Crabbe’s mishandling of Fiendfyre a few months ago. Shuddering at how he, Ron and Hermione had narrowly escaped the Room of Requirement along with Malfoy and Goyle on three broomsticks and with Ravenclaw’s Diadem around his wrist, he opened the door and stepped inside.

The first thought he had was how empty it seemed. Was it possible that the Room was not entirely as providing as it once was? Harry looked around, hoping to see a table and chair and manifest and, to his delight, saw the most beautiful wooden table and chair adorned with new pieces of parchment and a rather handsome-looking quill. Pulling the chair back, he took a seat and pulled out his homework from last night and went over it quickly. Hermione wasn’t too harsh on most of his other work, which left him plenty of time to conclude the majority of his homework. While feeling grateful for having Hermione check his work, he supposed he shouldn’t get too used to it just yet.

After what seemed like an hour, Harry finally stepped out of the Room of Requirement feeling a little more level-headed. He slowly made his way to class and was surprised to see he was one of the first people there. He took a seat as more students started to make their way in. Harry instead gazed out of the window, wishing he was back in the Room of Requirement and fervently wishing he used some of the time to wish up a bed to catch up on some more sleep. He heard someone pull up the chair next to him and heard them sit down. Expecting to see Ron, Harry turned around and felt his greeting screech to a halt. It was Hermione who was sitting next to him instead.

‘I thought you and I could sit next to each other in class today,’ suggested Hermione. ‘Unless you don’t want me to, of course.’

‘Fine with me,’ said Harry, feeling rather pleased.

‘I was hoping you’d say that,’ smiled Hermione. ‘Oh, do you want to study again tonight?’

‘Sure,’ nodded Harry. As he looked around, he saw Terry Boot glaring at him and looking rather miffed. Feeling suddenly a lot happier than he had for a long while, Harry smiled to himself as he waited for the lesson to begin.

*

As Harry and Hermione slowly started to make up, it was as if nothing had ever occurred between them. Harry soon found himself spending more and more time with Hermione again, whether it was sitting together in classes, studying in the library or the Room of Requirement together (Harry had shown Hermione that the Room of Requirement was still functional, much to her astonishment), and they even started to spend most mealtimes together. Occasionally, Harry would wonder how Hermione managed to spend as much time with him as she did with Terry but, he thought bitterly, Head Boy and Head Girl late-night strolls more than likely provided ample time for them to catch up.

As the weeks went by, Christmas started to make its mark on the castle’s halls. Mistletoe seemed to be hanging around everywhere this year. Ron and Lavender had already been given a double detention for what was deemed to be a rather unscrupulous display in the Entrance Hall, much to Lavender’s chagrin (Ron was rather nonchalant about the whole thing). More than once, Harry had been caught underneath a branch of it by a group of giggling fangirls, who always seemed to suggest they’d more than willingly reciprocate if he would, much to Hermione’s amusement. Thankfully, on one rare occasion that Harry was cornered on his own by a rather persistent group, Ginny had been passing by and, thanks to her well-aimed Bat-Bogey Hexes, he was finally no longer being bothered.

‘Well, at least you never have to look far if you ever want a snog,’ teased Hermione after Harry had recounted this latest misadventure during another late-night study session in the Common Room.

‘Honestly, it’s bizarre. I never got this attention before defeating Voldemort. It’s like ten times worse now,’ groaned Harry.

‘Well, at least I’m glad you’re not taking advantage of anyone,’ said Hermione pointedly. Harry flushed and said nothing, reminding himself that Hermione had probably not quite forgotten about the ill-timed kiss that he had given her about a month ago.

‘You know I’m really sorry about that, right?’ mumbled Harry, looking her in the eye.

‘I know,’ said Hermione quietly. She cleared her throat before adding, ‘Besides, Terry and I aren’t seeing each other anymore, so it’s not like you did any real damage.’

It took everything that Harry had to not let his eyebrows shoot up. ‘Since when?’ he asked in surprise.

‘Well, we never really did become exclusive,’ admitted Hermione. ‘Yes, the date was fun and I enjoyed spending time with him, but a part of it in the beginning was to spite you, and I’m really sorry about that. He’s a nice guy, but he’s not my type, you know? So I made my feelings clear and that was the end of it.’

‘Oh,’ said a dumbfounded Harry. ‘And what did he say when you told him that?’

To his surprise, Hermione’s cheeks turned a little red. ‘None of your business,’ said Hermione briskly. ‘Now hand me that Potions essay. You must be done by now.’

‘Sure, ok,’ said Harry confusedly. He handed Hermione his roll of parchment as he felt his mind started to spin. ‘So when did this happen, anyway?’

‘A few days ago,’ said Hermione as she read through his essay.

‘How come you didn’t say anything?’ he asked.

‘What difference would it have made to you?’ said Hermione haughtily.

‘I would have – well, I dunno, but we tell each other everything, don’t we? It just seemed like a big thing to not want to talk about,’ said Harry.

‘I don’t tell you everything that happens to me, you know,’ she said with a shrug.

‘Like what?’ said Harry in surprise.

Hermione laughed. ‘Oh, Harry, if I had to tell you every little thing that happens to me, I don’t think you’d be able to handle it.’

‘Why not?’ asked Harry.

Hermione sighed. ‘Harry, do you really want me to sit here and tell you things how I notice this guy or another leering at me just because I’m a girl, and the random pain I’m in half the time for one reason or another, and how moody I especially get during a particular time of the month?

‘Oh,’ blinked Harry. ‘I guess not.’

‘Exactly,’ grinned Hermione. ‘These things are normal for me. They’re part and parcel with being a girl. It’s always nice to have someone listen to these things, but ideally, the person listening to you has a frame of reference. And as brilliant and wonderful as you are Harry, I don’t think you’re the best person to talk to if my period is just abnormally painful this month.’

‘I guess not,’ said Harry as he grinned sheepishly.

‘Well, at least you didn’t cringe and run away at the word ‘period’, I’ll give you that,’ smirked Hermione. ‘Well, good job on the essay. You’re doing very well lately in your work. I’m impressed.’

‘Is it really that shocking that I’m good at homework?’ smirked Harry. ‘Need I remind you that I got an Outstanding in my Defence Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.?’

‘Need I remind you that I got all Outstandings in the rest of mine?’ retorted Hermione.

‘Fair enough,’ said Harry as Hermione stuck her tongue out at him. ‘Thanks a lot though, Hermione. For everything. Not just tonight, you know?’

‘I know,’ said Hermione. She yawned widely. ‘What time is it?’

Harry checked his watch. ‘About eleven,’ he said.

‘Want to stop here?’ Hermione offered. ‘I’m rather tired tonight.’

‘Sure,’ nodded Harry, waving his wand around until all their things were in their respective bags.

‘Nicely done,’ noted Hermione.

‘Thanks,’ grinned Harry. ‘I’ve been practising.’

‘Did it hurt?’ smirked Hermione.

‘You can be pretty mean, you know,’ laughed Harry.

‘Oh, stop it. You know perfectly well I’m only teasing you,’ said Hermione as she patted his hand. She got up and stretched. ‘I think I’m off to bed. Terry’s in charge tonight, and I really do need to get some proper sleep.’

‘Right,’ Harry nodded as he stood up as well. ‘Goodnight then.’

‘Goodnight,’ said Hermione. As Harry was about to reach for his bag, Hermione suddenly asked, ‘Do you still want to know what Terry said when I told him I wanted to stop seeing him?’

‘Yeah, sure’ said Harry in surprise.

‘He said that it was too hard for him to ever live up to my expectations since it’s so obvious to everyone that I like you,’ she said softly.

Harry stared at her. ‘What?’ he said weakly.

Hermione shrugged. ‘That’s what he said to me. I tried to convince him otherwise, but he didn’t want to listen.’

‘But that’s crazy!’ exclaimed Harry. ‘You said you were over me. A month ago, you even told me to move on from you.’

‘So does that mean you don’t like me back anymore?’ asked Hermione quietly.

Harry froze. ‘I didn’t say that,’ he croaked out.

‘So if I had to ask you to take me to Hogsmeade this weekend, what would you say? asked Hermione.

‘I’d love to,’ said Harry, his throat suddenly very dry.

‘Okay then. Goodnight, Harry,’ said Hermione as she turned around and headed for the girl’s dormitory, leaving a rather stunned-looking Harry in her wake. Blinking, he darted up the stairs to his dormitory and slammed the door shut.

‘Oi!’ said Ron indignantly, rubbing his eyes. ‘People are trying to sleep here, you prat.’

‘Hermione just asked me out,’ blurted Harry.

Ron was suddenly much more alert. ‘Really? he asked? But what about Terry?’

‘She broke it off with him a few days ago. She was just about to go to bed and she asked me to Hogsmeade with her!’

‘Well, that’s good, isn’t it? You and her will finally get together. It’s a happy ending for everyone.’ Ron gave Harry a pointed look. ‘You are still interested in her, right?’

‘Of course I am, Ron! She just caught me off guard.’ Harry took a deep breath. ‘Okay, it’s not a big deal, right? We’ll go and have a couple of Butterbeers or something. It doesn’t have to be anything big, right?’

‘Right,’ smirked Ron. ‘Mate, calm down. The Hogsmeade week still a couple of days away. And I really would love to sleep now. We have classes, remember?’

Harry lay awake that night, his mind racing. Is it possible that he was finally getting a chance to spend time with Hermione on an actual date, just as he had hoped a few weeks ago? It seemed too good to be true, yet the following two days leading up to their date were rather uneventful. In fact, it was almost as if Hermione had forgotten about the entire thing. It was only the night before, as they sat at their usual table in the Common Room, that Hermione asked Harry if he wanted to do anything in particular the next day.

‘Oh, um, I didn’t really think of anything,’ said Harry sheepishly.

‘Well, what about that one time when you were planning to ask me out? Did you have anything in mind that time?

‘Um, no,’ said Harry, feeling more foolish by the second. ‘I just really wanted to spend time with you outside of school. That’s all really.’

Hermione’s cheeks turned a faint shade of pink. ‘You’re sweet,’ she said. ‘Well, I suppose we’ll just go with the flow. Isn’t that your preferred way of doing things in general anyway?’

‘Almost exclusively,’ said Harry with mock pride.

‘You’re such a Gryffindor,’ said Hermione, rolling her eyes. ‘Actually, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.’

‘Go ahead,’ said Harry.

‘Do you still feel bad about kissing me?’ she asked.

‘Oh,’ said Harry. ‘Yeah, I do. A lot.’

Hermione nodded thoughtfully. ‘And I suppose it’s because it wasn’t consensual?’

Harry jerked his head stiffly in agreement.

‘I see,’ said Hermione. She leaned closer towards Harry. ‘Kiss me,’ she said.

Harry looked at her in confusion. ‘Huh?’

‘Kiss me.’ She repeated. ‘On the lips, if it wasn’t clear enough for you.’

‘Why?’ asked Harry bewilderedly.

Hermione sighed. ‘Because I want you to, Harry,’ she said impatiently. ‘Now will you please kiss me?’

‘Erm…okay,’ said Harry, leaning forward and pressing his lips on hers very tentatively, giving her a rather chaste kiss. ‘Like that?’

Hermione rolled her eyes. ‘Honestly Harry, we both know you can kiss better than that.’

‘How the hell –’

‘Girls talk,’ said Hermione simply. ‘Now will you please kiss me like you actually want to?’

Taking a deep breath, Harry leaned forward again and pressed his lips more firmly on hers. He had forgotten how soft Hermione’s lips were, how they seemed to melt against his. Slowly, Harry felt his nerves and anxiety fade away as he kept kissing Hermione, and how he felt a sudden warmth seeping throughout his body, hoping desperately that Hermine would not notice the sudden tent in the front of his robes -

Hermione pulled away gently and cleared her throat. ‘Well, that was … refreshing.’

‘Refreshing?’ said Harry, who was feeling rather hot.

‘Mhm,’ Hermione nodded. ‘It was nice. Very nice. I knew you had it in you.’

‘Erm … thanks,’ mumbled Harry, feeling his face turn red. ‘You were great too.’

‘Thank you,’ flushed Hermione.

They stared at each other for a moment before Hermione whipped out her wand and packed up their things. ‘See you in the morning?’ she said as she got up.

‘Yeah, goodnight Hermione,’ said Harry, making no move to get up. His dick was still straining against his underwear, and he didn’t fancy the idea of giving Hermione an eyeful of the reaction that her kissing had just given him.

Hermione eyed him warily. ‘Aren’t you getting up?’

Adjusting himself as inconspicuously as he could, Harry stood up as well. For a brief moment, he thought that Hermione had glanced down at his nether regions, but he was caught off guard when she planted a soft kiss on his lips.

‘Goodnight, Harry,’ she whispered, quickly disappearing up the staircase to the girl’s dormitory with Harry staring after her, a smile playing on his lips.

Sleep came easily to him tonight, but waking up, Harry felt a bundle of nerves in the pit of his stomach. Thinking he should meet up with Hermione in the Common Room first so they could go down to breakfast together, Harry quickly showered and tried to pick up something that was halfway-decent to wear, ignoring Ron’s sniggering as he tore apart his trunk for a pair of matching socks. He nervously attempted to run a comb through his hair, but he somehow managed to make it even messier. Finally somewhat satisfied with his appearance, he was about to head downstairs before he heard a soft knock on the door. Opening it up, he eyes fell on a rather nervous-looking Hermione.

‘Sorry, I was getting a little anxious,’ she said, biting her lip.

‘That’s ok,’ said Harry, letting her in. ‘You look great,’ he added shyly. Hermione smiled widely. ‘Thank you,’ she said quietly. ‘So do you’. Her eyes took in Harry’s failed attempt at making his hair look neat. ‘Did you actually try and comb your hair for a change?’ she asked, stifling a rather girlish giggle.

‘Does it look that bad?’ grimaced Harry.

Hermione shook her head. ‘Your hair suits you, Harry,’ she said. ‘It gives you a very whirlwind look, like you just got off your broom. Girls really go for that sort of thing, you know.’

‘Do you like it though?’ asked Harry.

Hermione smiled widely. ‘I do,’ she said. She tucked a loose strand of his hair behind his ear. ‘How come you’re growing it out?’

Harry shrugged. ‘I guess it’s a lot of effort to keep it short, especially after last year. I just got used to it.’

‘Mhm,’ said Hermione, her hand resting lightly on his cheek. ‘This is where I slapped you, wasn’t it?’

‘Yeah,’ said Harry, his voice caught in his throat.

Hermione’s hand lingered a little longer before tapping his cheek very lightly with her fingers.

‘Ouch,’ mumbled Harry, a smile playing on his lips.

‘You deserve it,’ Hermione whispered, before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him full on the mouth. Harry, taken aback by Hermione’s sudden move, froze for the briefest of moments before kissing her back, their mouths glued to each other as they tilted their heads, deepening their kiss.

Harry suddenly felt his dick starting to harden. Trying to figure out how to prevent Hermione to feel it, he attempted to adjust his hips slightly before Hermione broke off their kiss and whispered in his ear, ‘It’s ok, Harry. I don’t mind it.’ She then resumed kissing him, purposefully pulling herself closer to him as her groin rubbed his, her hands running through his hair as Harry’s placed her hands on her waist.

They did not know how long they stood kissing in the dormitory, but neither of them was particularly keen on breaking off the kiss. Finally, Hermione gently unravelled her arms from around Harry’s neck and took a step backwards. ‘Sorry,’ she mumbled, her cheeks flaming red. ‘I wasn’t exactly planning on doing that. I got a little carried away.’

Harry shook his head. ‘Don’t worry about me, Hermione. It was great. You’re really amazing, you know that?’

Hermione gave him an appreciative look. ‘Listen, I’ve been thinking of something for a while now, and I was wondering if you want to do that instead of going into Hogsmeade.’

Harry cocked his head. ‘What did you have in mind?’ he asked.

Somehow, Hermione managed to blush even harder. ‘I know it’s going to sound a little weird coming from me, but … well, do you want to stay here and … um … have sex?’

It was as if a bludger had just hit Harry in the back of his head. Noticing his dumbfounded expression, Hermione quickly added, ‘I know it sounds like it’s coming from nowhere, but I’ve thought long and hard about this. We’re both of age, so it’s not like we’ll be doing anything wrong, you know? And I’ve spent the last year of my life on the hunt looking for Horcruxes. I do want to have a little fun before I graduate Hogwarts, and I’ve liked you for a long time, and I trust you probably more than anyone else at this point, so I’d rather do this kind of thing with you, mostly because it'll be my first time but also especially if you’re as attracted to me as much as I think you are.’

‘I am attracted to you,’ said Harry hoarsely.

‘I figured,’ said Hermione softly. ‘You were a bit … obvious’. Her eyes flickered briefly at the prominent bulge in his jeans.

‘Oh, right,’ said Harry gruffly, feeling embarrassed at being caught out.

‘Honestly, it’s fine,’ said Hermione gently. ‘You can’t help it. It’s an instinctive reaction. And it’s evidence that you find me physically appealing.’

‘Right. Sure.’ Harry’s brain had suddenly stopped working. Whenever he pictured how today might go, it certainly wasn’t like this.

‘So, do you want to?’ asked Hermione. ‘But I only want you to do this if you feel comfortable with me. I don’t want to force you.’

Harry nodded. ‘Whatever you want.’

‘Okay. Let’s give it a try then.’ They both looked at each other. ‘Erm, do you mind going first?’ asked Hermione.

‘What do I do?’ asked Harry nervously.

‘Maybe take your shirt off?’ suggested Hermione.

‘Okay, sure,’ said Harry, shrugging off his jumper, his hair now even messier and his glasses slightly askew.

Hermione rolled her eyes. ‘Honestly,’ she muttered as she quickly stepped closer to him to fix his glasses. ‘Quidditch has been good for you,’ she added, admiring the faint muscles on Harry’s arms and chest.

‘Thanks,’ mumbled Harry, feeling secretly pleased with himself.

‘I’m not really that fit, to be honest,’ said Hermione quietly. ‘I did consider taking up some kind of fitness regimen this year, but I’m too busy what with everything else and –’

‘You look fine Hermione,’ said Harry, cutting her off.

‘You haven’t seen me yet,’ she mumbled.

‘It doesn’t matter. I like how you look. I mean it.’

‘Thank you,’ she said gratefully, giving him a small smile. ‘Do you want to take your jeans off next?’

‘Sure,’ nodded Harry as he undid his belt and slid off his jeans. Hermione’s eyes immediately landed on the well-defined protrusion in his boxers.

‘That looks rather painful,’ he heard her say.

‘It’s not so bad,’ he lied.

Hermione’s hands lingered nervously on the hem of her jumper. ‘I don’t want to be selfish, but would you mind closing your eyes?’ Harry nodded, shutting his eyes tightly as he heard the rustle of Hermione’s clothing hit the floor.

‘Okay. Open them,’ he finally heard Hermione say.

Harry opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times to focus, before stopping to stare and gulp. Hermione stood, her hair no longer in a ponytail, wearing only a pair of surprisingly frilly underwear that hugged her body tightly. During their year-long hunt for Voldemort’s Horcruxes, he, Hermione and Ron had lost a bit of weight from their occasional lack of proper nutrition. Yet courtesy of Mrs Weasley’s excellent cooking, and that of the Hogwarts’s house-elves, they had started to put on that weight back. Hermione had certainly reaped the benefits of this around her hips and thighs in a way that was making Harry’s dick somehow swell even more uncomfortably in his boxers.

Hermione’s eyes met his. 'What?' she asked, a blush creeping on her cheeks. ‘You’ve never seen a girl in a thong before?'

Harry shook his head. ‘Um, no,’ he said bashfully, feeling his face get rather warm. As he continued to admire her body, his eyes drifted nervously to Hermione’s bra-clad breasts again. He couldn’t believe how much bigger they looked than Ginny’s.

‘Oh, right,’ said Hermione, her face turning redder. ‘No one’s ever seen them before, you know,’ she added quietly, noticing where Harry’s gaze was fixated. ‘And I don’t like showing them off, because I know how much guys will gawp and leer at them.’

Harry, sensing she was indirectly referring to him, tore his eyes away from her heaving chest.

‘No, Harry, don’t be silly,’ said Hermione hurriedly. ‘I didn’t mean you, obviously.’

‘Oh, right,’ said Harry dumbly.

Hermione huffed. ‘This is getting ridiculous,’ she muttered. Her hands reached around her back and she quickly unclasped her bra before letting it slide off.

Harry’s jaw dropped. Hermione’s breasts were beautiful. Their fullness now even more accentuated, he let his eyes dart over them greedily as he admired their shape and their stiff peaks.

‘Like what you see?’ asked Hermione softly.

Harry nodded, too tongue-tied to say anything coherent.

Hermione giggled. ‘You really like them, don’t you?’

Harry nodded again, still too awestruck to speak.

‘Lie back,’ she whispered. Harry hastened to do so, shuffling backwards as Hermione knelt upright on his bed, leaning closer until she was barely inches away from his face. Slowly, she grasped his hands and guided them towards her breasts. Harry could feel his engorged member twitch in anticipation. Following Hermione’s whispered instructions, he gently caressed them while his thumbs circled her erect nipples. Her breasts were impossibly soft, and just large enough that they fit perfectly in his hands.

‘Have you really never done anything like this?’ murmured Hermione.

‘No. Why, am I terrible?’ asked Harry half-jokingly, desperately hoping he wasn’t.

‘Quite the opposite, actually,’ said Hermione reassuringly. She let out a soft gasp as Harry pinched her nipples gently. ‘You have really nice hands,’ she breathed.

‘And you have really nice tits,’ said Harry without thinking, flushing at how crass his statement sounded.

Hermione snorted with laughter. ‘You’re such an idiot, Harry,’ she said warmly, before fiercely kissing him again, her tongue deftly teased his own.

‘Hey, Harry,’ began Hermione when they finally paused to take a breath. ‘Um ... if you don’t want to go all the way, I understand. I don’t want my feelings to pressure you into doing anything you might regret.’

‘What are you talking about, Hermione?’ he asked confusedly. ‘There’s no one else I’d rather be doing any of this with.’

Hermione gave him a wide smile. ‘Do you really mean that, Harry?’

‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘I just wish it didn’t take me so long to realise what was in front of me. I feel like such an idiot.’

‘No, don’t say that,’ said Hermione tenderly. ‘None of that matters, I promise. I just never believed I’d be so lucky to be doing this with you.’

‘I think I’m the lucky one here,’ said Harry with a smile.

Hermione laughed. ‘You’re really sweet, you know that?’ She gave him a soft kiss before clearing her throat. ‘So, if we really are going to go through with this, I think we should get a move on. Otherwise, I honestly think your dick might just burst if we wait any longer.’

Harry rolled his eyes. ‘I’m not in a rush. We can take our time.’

‘Maybe, but just remember that you’re not the only one here who’s feeling really horny right now’.

Harry coughed as he spluttered out, ‘Right, sorry Hermione’.

Hermione laughed. ‘Oh, and I’m on a contraceptive potion, just in case things get a little too hot and heavy and you don’t pull out in time.’ Seeing Harry’s raised eyebrows, she added, ‘It’s very good for other things. You know, like for a girl’s time of the month. Madam Pomfrey always has some on hand. They tell us about these things in our second year, but it’s not something that’s broadcasted to the male gender.’

‘Because us blokes are all idiots about all that stuff anyway, right?’ joked Harry.

‘Exactly,’ said Hermione brightly, albeit with a wink. She straightened up and shuffled a little further away from Harry until she was closer to his waist. She let a finger trace the obscene tent in Harry’s boxers.

‘Your dick feels so hard,’ she murmured.

‘It helps to have you in front of me,’ said Harry with a grin.

Hermione flushed in reply. Finally seeming to make up her mind about something, she grabbed the band of Harry’s underwear and pulled them down. Her eyes went wide as she took in the sight of his formidable erection, yet she did not say anything. Instead, she slid off her panties and straddled herself on top of him. Harry could feel the warmth emanating from between Hermione’s thighs, and felt himself getting more turned on as he realised just how slick her vagina felt.

‘Are you ready?’ she asked.

Harry nodded. ‘Are you?’ he asked hoarsely.

Hermione nodded. She lifted herself slightly and directed Harry’s hard cock towards her vagina. As she slowly mounted him, she let out a sharp gasp.

‘Are you ok?’ asked Harry worriedly.

‘Mhm,’ she replied faintly. ‘Sorry, it’s just that ... you’re quite a handful,’ she admitted abashedly.

‘I’m sorry,’ mumbled Harry.

‘Don’t be,’ whispered Hermione, her soft lips brushing gently against his. She closed her eyes as readied herself upright; her face screwed up in endearing determination as she allowed herself to take more of him inside of her. Harry held her by her slim waist as he felt himself penetrate her until he was buried deep inside of her. Hermione then slowly started to rock her hips in a rhythm that Harry found to be slow yet tantalising. He found it hard to resist the urge to speed things up, but he kept furiously reminding himself that he shouldn’t be selfish; that Hermione was as inexperienced as he was, and that she needed time to adjust herself. Yet this train of thought was soon derailed when Hermione let out a whimper; her full breasts colliding with his chest as she smashed her lips on his. Harry drunk in her aroma as his hands deftly explored her slender body.

As they let themselves gauge each other’s reactions, Harry soon found himself unconsciously matching Hermione’s rhythm; both of them slowly gathering more speed as they started to lose themselves in their bliss. He heard Hermione moan in his ear about how wonderful she was feeling, which only made him increase his pace in an effort to outmatch hers. Hermione responded gratefully by whispering more soft compliments in his ear, her breath sending tingles down his body.

Suddenly, without thinking, Harry grabbed Hermione and flipped her over. Ignoring her surprised yelp, he planted several soft kisses all over her breasts and stomach and instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist to better penetrate her. With her body bent over backwards the way that it was, Harry ploughed Hermione in a manner that was almost animalistic. As he ravaged her, Hermione’s moans started to get louder and louder; his heavy testicles slapping loudly against her plump behind. Knowing he didn’t have much time left before he’ll ejaculate, he desperately ramped up his speed in a desperate effort to make Hermione orgasm first. In response to his intense lovemaking, Hermione finally screamed out that she was about to come. Harry felt her whole body shake as she came hard. With barely a handful of seconds until he himself reaches his own peak, he similarly roared out that he was about to come as well. Just as he was about to pull out, however, a vice-like grip held him in place and refused to let go. Instead, he found Hermione’s eyes and looked deep into them while his own powerful orgasm rippled inside of her.

Gasping for breath, Harry somehow managed to dislodge himself from Hermione and crawled up next to her before collapsing heavily on the bed.

‘That was incredible,’ panted Harry. ‘Are you ok, Hermione?’

She jerked her head in reply. Slowly, she inhaled and sighed happily as she snuggled up next to him. ‘Sorry if I was a little loud,’ she mumbled, her face flushed. ‘It just felt so good.’

‘Anytime,’ murmured Harry in her ear, finally catching his breath.

‘Oh, I’m sure you’ll hear me calling for you again soon enough,’ she smiled. Harry’s dick, despite just experiencing the most wonderful orgasm, started to twitch again at the very thought.

‘So, what happens now?’ asked Harry.

‘I don’t know about you, but I’m much too sore to go again.’ said Hermione firmly, ignoring Harry’s hardening dick. ‘Especially after you flipped me over the way that you did. Just where did that come from, anyway?’ she asked curiously.

‘I have no idea. Instinct, I guess,’ said Harry sheepishly.

Hermione snorted. ‘You’re always so humble,’ she smirked. She gave him a slow kiss, which Harry happily returned.

‘Thank you, Harry,’ murmured Hermione after they broke apart.

‘You’re welcome,’ said Harry quietly.

The door was suddenly wrenched open. Harry and Hermione froze and, to their embarrassment, saw a very triumphant-looking Ginny.

’Ginny,’ squeaked Hermione as she scrambled around in a futile attempt to cover herself up. ‘What are you doing in here?’

’Trying to see who the hell was stupid enough to not put up a damn Silencing Charm,’ she grinned. Her eyes quickly roamed their naked bodies until they landed squarely on Harry’s erection, widening in disbelief as she did.

’Wow, Harry,’ she breathed, gawking at his throbbing hard-on. ’I never knew you were carrying around a beater’s bat all this time.’ Harry squirmed uncomfortably as he tried to ignore how openly Ginny was staring at his manhood. ’No wonder you were screaming so much, Hermione,’ she went on, her grin widening. ’There’s no way in hell that dick’s gonna fit in my pussy without me screaming my head off either! Nice tits, by the way.’

’Oh my God,’ squirmed Hermione as she continued to try and hide her nakedness.

’Is everything alright, Ginny?’ said a dreamy voice. Harry groaned inwardly as Luna sauntered in as well.

‘Hey, Luna,’ said Harry resignedly.

’Hello, Harry,’ said Luna cheerfully. ’You have a very big penis, you know,’ she added conversationally.

’Could you two please stop looking at my boyfriend’s dick?’ said Hermione rather irritatedly. Harry’s heart skipped a beat at her use of the word boyfriend. Was that what he was to her now?

’Ooh, he’s your boyfriend now, Hermione?’ said Ginny teasingly, interrupting Harry’s thoughts. ’Better start practising that Silencing Charm then. Wouldn’t want my dear brother to hear you moaning out Harry’s name, would we?’ she continued, ignoring the mortified look on Hermione’s face.

’I couldn’t have been that loud,’ mumbled Hermione, her face furiously red.

’Hermione, thank Merlin everyone else is in Hogsmeade, otherwise the whole house would have heard you have an orgasm,’ she cackled.

’Oh, God,’ moaned Hermione as she buried her face in Harry’s chest. Harry glared at the two of them, hoping they’ll take the hint and leave. Ginny’s grin stretched even wider at his obvious annoyance towards them, before finally nodding briefly.

’Anyway, we’ll leave you two kids to it. Harry sure seems raring to go again,’ said Ginny, winking at Harry. ’Let’s go, Luna.’

‘Bye Harry, Hermione,’ waved Luna as she shut the door behind them.

‘That was so embarrassing,’ wailed Hermione in Harry’s chest. ‘Harry, they heard me have an orgasm!’

‘Well, at least it wasn’t Ron,’ said Harry, trying to cheer her up.

‘Oh, of course, because you sure seemed to hate having two pretty girls stare at your dick,’ she said bitterly, wrenching her face out of his chest and glaring pointedly at him.

‘What are you talking about?’ said Harry incredulously, stunned at the sudden turn of events.

‘You know what I mean, Harry,’ snapped Hermione. ‘You had ample time to try and cover yourself up.’

‘I’m sorry, Hermione. I just got a little distracted-’

‘Oh, I’m sure you did,’ Hermione as she pushed him away. ‘Oh, Harry, is that a beater’s bat between your legs?’ she said in a cruel imitation of Ginny’s voice. ’Oh, Harry, did you know that you have a large penis?’ she continued, now mocking Luna’s voice. Suddenly, she burst into tears.

‘Hermione -’ he said weakly.

‘I’m sorry, Harry,’ she sobbed. ‘I was just so happy until those two came in and ruined the whole thing.’ She buried her face in his chest again, and hiccoughed. ‘You hear these awful stories about someone’s first time, and you were so wonderful, and everything was going great, and now I’m here crying like an idiot.’

‘You’re not an idiot, Hermione,’ murmured Harry as he stroked her hair.

‘Yes, I am,’ she mumbled.

‘No, you’re not,’ said Harry firmly. ‘Hermione, I didn’t plan on losing my virginity today, but I was glad that it was with you. I cannot even begin to list the reasons why, or we’d be here all day. Just trust me when I say I’ve never felt anything for anyone the way I do with you.’ he said firmly.

Hermione sniffed. ‘Do you really mean that, Harry?’ she asked in a small voice, looking up.

‘I do, and I’m sorry it took me so long to realise what was in front of me,’ said Harry. ‘I feel like such an idiot.’

‘No, don’t say that,’ said Hermione, straightening up. ‘None of that matters, I promise. I just never believed I’d be so lucky to be doing this with you.’

‘I think I’m the lucky one here,’ said Harry with a smile. ‘So, am I your boyfriend now?’ he teased.

Hermione gave him a wet chuckle. ‘Sorry, I just didn’t want to call you something crass like a fuck buddy or something. And besides, I think our relationship runs a little deeper than that, don’t you think?’

‘Well, I guess boyfriend does have a lovely ring to it,’ agreed Harry.

Hermione smiled widely at him as she planted a very tender kiss on his lips. Sighing happily, she once again rested her head on Harry’s chest and snuggled up close to him.

‘You know, Harry,’ she said lightly, after a while. ‘I’ll be honest, it was kind of funny watching those two gawk at ... well, you know,’ she smirked.

‘Funny?’ asked Harry quizzically.

‘Well,’ she blushed, ‘you’re really handsome, so it’s kinda fun to show you off a little.’

‘Oh. Ok.’ said Harry bewilderedly.

‘But that’s never going to happen again,’ she said firmly. ‘I can be quite possessive, you know,’ she winked.

‘Don’t I know it,’ Harry chuckled.

Hermione rubbed her groin gently against his. ‘How the hell are you so hard again?’ she wondered aloud.

Harry shrugged. ‘Well, you doing that sure isn’t helping.'

‘Well, I’m still much too sore for another round. But - well, there is something else I can do.’ offered Hermione.

‘What?’ asked Harry, raising his eyebrow.

‘Well, I’ve only done it once,’ said Hermione sheepishly. ‘But it was quite well-received if I do say so myself,’ she added proudly.

‘Really? With whom? Krum?’ asked Harry, feeling a stab of jealousy.

‘Harry, I was fifteen!’ she said admonishingly. ‘And Krum was only ever just a friend!’ She sighed. ‘It was with Ron,’ she admitted quietly. ‘I thought it would spice things up a little, and I had never got round to buying him a birthday present for his 18th birthday since we were on the run, so –’

‘Right,’ Harry nodded. ‘But what exactly did you do?’

‘You haven’t guessed yet?’ she said in surprise.

‘Erm ... should I have?’ he said, feeling his brain turn to mush as Hermione slowly started to stroke his dick.

Hermione rolled her eyes. ‘Maybe this will give you an idea,’ she said impishly. She wiggled down to face Harry’s throbbing erection and let her tongue deftly lick it. Harry suddenly understood what she was implying.

‘Hermione, you don’t have to do ... that,’ said Harry, despite feeling entirely the opposite.

‘Why not? Don’t you want me to?’ asked Hermione in a hurt voice.

‘No, I do!’ said Harry quickly ‘But - well, do _you_ want to?’

‘I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t, would I?’ she smirked. ‘Although,’ she added with a blush, ‘Ron’s not as - gifted, as you are.’

‘Hermione –’

‘But I do like a challenge,’ she said, her smirk growing.

‘Hermione,’ said Harry weakly, his resolve failing him. ‘Are you sure?’

Hermione laughed. ‘Harry, I don’t think the saviour of the Wizarding World getting a well-deserved blowjob from his girlfriend is such a bad thing, is it?’ Ignoring his feeble protests, Hermione wrapped her lips around Harry’s hard cock, deftly sucking him off as one hand stroked the protruding flesh.

As Harry sighed and savoured Hermione Granger giving him his first blowjob ever (which he thought was absolutely amazing), he wondered to himself how soon Hermione will similarly let him return the favour, and if she would object to using the Room of Requirement instead next time when she does.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say a massive thank you all for all your support! This was an especially challenging chapter to write and, at over 10,000 words long, it's also the longest chapter I've ever written. From the beginning, I knew how I wanted it my first ever smut fic to end, but it took me a very long time to finally get there. In fact, the ending was written around the time of the first chapter, and it was a thrill to finally reach it and connect it to the rest of the story. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the conclusion to this little tale. Until the next one!


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